French Indian Wars skirmish to "Blood & Plunder".

 

I guess I would class myself as more of a historical big-battle, large skirmish kind of wargamer when it comes to a preference about the games I would always jump at playing with a distinct leaning towards the simulation quality of a set of rules, which I gauge on my own assessment spectrum of simulation at one end of the extreme and game at the other, and then my other assessment profile, fun to play - not fun to play, preferring that sweet-spot of the fun, simulation game.

As far as the first parameter with regards to Blood & Plunder (B&P) rules from Firelock games, seemingly more aimed at the smaller skirmish game, they would not have appealed in terms of other rule sets I would naturally turn to, and as regards the simulation aspect, I see them very much in the realms of a game, aimed at lovers of the Hollywood pirate cliché, in the guise of Captain Jack Sparrow rather than claims to be recreating the career of Edward Teach.

As to whether B&P are or were fun to play, the initial hurdles to my decision to play them would have not permitted me to have offered an opinion until now.

In addition to having a clear set of parameters when assessing games and rules I prefer over others, I also believe in the maxim that minds are like parachutes, working at their best when open, and the Devon Wargames Group is the kind of club where you can get the opportunity to play most sets of rules out there at any given time, with all sorts of themes as well.

So it was the chance of playing something new to me that prompted me to take up Mike C's offer to host a game of B&P using his marvellous collection of French Indian War figures and terrain which I have enjoyed games with in previous club meetings.

The rules themselves have features common to several others I have played in my time with various unit and character statistics that feature in the combat and morale calculations that require testing during play, the normal movement, loading and firing actions and an interesting activation sequence using a playing card sequencing  based on the suit of the card, its value, with aces low, and the quality of the troops using the card.

The quality of the troop type is important, because although the suit and value determines who gets to activate first in a given round of play, the quality determines how many things you get to do in that action, and sometimes the two requirements don't always match, leading to an interesting decision point for players as to who to activate and when depending on a given situation, never knowing what options the enemy might have as their priorities.

Mike presented the table as seen above, for the four of us playing the game, with two players per side, and with myself and Nathan commanding the British garrison holding the fort, and with potential for some reinforcements turning up later in the game, whilst Alex and Steve M took the French command, tasked with taking the fort and fending off any relief attempts.

As part of the setup Nathan and I, as British defenders, had the opportunity to rearrange parts of the terrain to our liking and so prepared a clear field of fire around our stockade, as the most likely preparation made by any garrison. 

Each team of players was presented with a very nice set of 17th century replica playing cards from which we drew a hand of cards equal to the number of units we had in play and then once we could see the hand, the decision on who to activate and what to do with the unit in question.

At first, with the various units at long range and seeking to manoeuvre into position, the activation sequence was not particularly critical, albeit the occasional irritating hit on a unit that was hoping to get the first advantageous shot from cover, which, as figures became casualties pushed units ever closer to their break point as the game progressed.

I must say that the anticipation of reviewing the hand of cards drawn each turn of play and bathing in the comfort of several face cards in hand whilst trying to assess the priorates coming up in play as regards getting in an important shot or charging in on a unit that was ripe for being sorted out with the bayonet was a very fun aspect of play in B&P and made for a very interactive game as the drama unfolded before us.

The French made good headway around all sides of the fort and their combined firing soon forced the British back from the front palisades around the main gate, as Nathan and I decided to surrender the position, looking to form an inner defence of the compound based around the tower position at the back of the fort garrisoned by our best bayonet wielders and firers, the ever reliable British Grenadiers.

As Indians and French Marines scaled the front palisade and dropped into the interior, a close hand to hand struggle developed in the compound, with nowhere to hide, as the British defenders poured in musketry backed by bayonet attacks, as the defenders attempted to turn the compound into a kill zone for the first enemy units that entered; and this was where the card play really came to the fore, with the need to get the drop on the enemy and make it count before they could respond in kind made for a very fun entertaining period of play.

Meanwhile the first British relief units started to appear on the perimeter in the form of several units of British rangers who very quickly asserted themselves by shooting up and dispersing several follow up French units closing on different sides of the fort.

In the end the interior compound fell to the French, but not without a heavy toll on the attackers and although the British rangers were making progress on the perimeter and the fort tower held firm it seemed fair to award the game to the French, although I like to think they would have had to offer terms to our stalwart grenadiers to surrender the place with full military honours.

I can't say I will be a regular player of B&P, but I enjoyed our game and can readily see why the system attracts its fans, with its player decision points generated by the card play mechanism an attractive way to enjoy skirmish games.

In my assessment B&P leans more towards being a game rather than a simulation of skirmish black powder warfare, but is no less than a very fun game as well being a strong competitor in this genre to similar offerings such as Musket and Tomahawks.

Thank you to Mike C for putting the game together and to Steve M, Alex and Nathan for the fun of playing it.

JJ

Muskets and Tomahawks in the American War of Independence.

This weekend I had the pleasure of joining Mike C., Bob, Si, John, Alex and Paul for game of Muskets & Tomahawks version II, set in the wilderness of North American during the American War of Independence with a straight forward attack and defence scenario, that had the American Patriots or Rebels depending on what side of the War of Independence or Revolution you get your history from and like wise the poor-old Redcoats, simply following orders and policing the colonies against tax avoiders, or those damnable lobsters doing the bidding of their tyrant king, you can take your pick.

  

As you will see the American line looked rather formidable with a river to its front with sections of rapids restricting the areas to be forded, overlooked by plenty of cover provided by woodland, flanking a ridgeline on which several emplacements had been constructed and defended by American Continental regulars, with their riflemen and allied Indians operating mainly out on the flanks.

 

The British had a significant force of regulars that included light infantry and grenadiers, backed up by loyalist units including the Queen's Rangers and several warbands of Iroquois Indians.

The position looked like the one General Howe would have definitely flanked, looking to minimise casualties by turning the rebels out of their nicely constructed positions rather than an attack directly to the front; but it seems we must have had 'Old Tom' Gage running matters because a classic Bunker Hill manoeuvre was the order of the day and so the British force was split into three divisions, as seen above with the intent to demonstrate in the centre and look to turn the flanks, with the centre supporting and reinforcing success as it hopefully presented.

To support this 'order of the day' the British would be able to recycle destroyed units and bring them back to the table from the jump of points on their table edge as required.

My Light Bobs deploy on the left flank preceded by a screen of Iroquois warriors as the advance begins.

I hadn't played M&T for quite a while, and most of us were getting reacquainted with the rules and sequence of play as we went, with the interesting decision points the rules throw up for the respective players, whether to play an enemy turn card or not and thus take command points for a later activation, whilst trying to set up a sequence of play to discomfort the enemy in so doing.

As my light bobs and Indians walked into a maelstrom of American long rifle fire, effectively the artillery in this skirmish game, with my Indians purposefully out ahead screening the lights and being the bullet magnet I thought they might prove to be, the regulars came on behind in open order, looking to close up to the river as unmolested as they could ready to threaten the positions on the other side.

The Indians did their task manfully as they made best use of the limited cover on the British bank and returned some sporadic musketry that managed to knock over the occasional militiaman or rifleman that showed himself.

In the meantime the the light-bobs, who had done what I had hoped by drawing American units out on to the American left flank to contest their approach, used their quicker march rate to quickly change direction and join the regulars nearer the centre in readiness to join the crossing, accompanied by the battered Indians.

The battle was also 'hotting-up' on the British right as John pushed the Queens Rangers and Loyalist Provincials across the river with his regulars in close support, managing to drive off the American Indian and militia, not though without casualties as the Provincials fell back in rout, to rally back behind the redcoats advancing past them.

Si managing things in the centre, swung his recoats to the right in support of John's success and helped to draw off fire from the main push that was backed up with the British assault unit of Grenadiers looking to take the fight up on to the American ridge.

With a six turn game the battle was very much in the balance at the halfway stage, with the British assault starting to make their way over the river but suffering ever increasing casualties as they did so.

The first British regulars across rapidly formed close order line from the open order they had used in the approach march and started to issue the first crashing volley fire that was the trade mark of British infantry from this era, with the first volleys starting to thin the ranks of Continentals lining the ridge.

As if to join in the fun my battered Indians seemed to take heart from the turn of events and charged into the woods on the American right flank wiping out a unit of riflemen with tomahawks in close assault as the light-bobs drove the Americans out of another nearby wood, making good use of the bayonet and thus allowing my two units of regulars to get across and join in the musketry to clear the forward ridge of defenders.

However our American opponents were certainly not done and attack was followed by counterattack with my Indians and light-bobs dispersed in the fighting as the remains of these battered units finally succumbed to the casualties they had accrued on the approach.

 

As the afternoon drew to a close, our battle reached a crescendo of action as redcoats battled along the length of the forward slopes to dislodge the American defenders and were rewarded for their casualty count with the dispersal of several American units manning the log emplacements.

The final 'hurrah' saw the bearskin clad grenadiers launch themselves on to the American left flank ridge position driving off the defenders with their bayonets but going down gloriously, to quote out senior commander, in the process.

 

The game was declared a British win, but only just, and the table bearing the British casualties bore testament to the bill paid for such a victory, and with many more victories such as this the war was most certainly lost.

Thank you to Mike for putting on a very fun game, with lots of drama and narrative, and of course to Bob, Si, Paul, Alex, and John for their company and play.

JJ

Halloween Rampant, a nod to good old Beowulf.

This is not a typical AAR of the game I put on at our club's October meeting. I thought that those of you who are familiar with the Dragon and Lion Rampant rules, might like to hear about how I introduced some Non Player Characters into the game, so here we go.

With Halloween approaching, I thought it would be appropriate to put on a Rampant game with a nod to good old Beowulf and add a supernatural flavour. 

I could have just lined up some humans warriors against an army of the undead, but I thought this was perhaps a bit too obvious and might even put off some of our members who have a more traditional/ historical bent to the games they play, and so I devised the idea of introducing some fiendish and undead (Skeletons) as NPCs. I'll explain the mechanics behind them a bit later.

SETTING THE SCENE

The game was a combination of scenarios from Lion Rampant (The taxman Cometh) and Dragon Rampant (The Crystal Gale). 

A group of woodsmen tracking a rather handsome stag are drawn into an area of fairly open woodland, where to their amazement they see riches in the form of jewelled amulets, small chests filled with gold and silver coins and all manner of extremely valuable swords and daggers and other wonderous things; but as they pounce on the riches a fog descends and lightning shoots across the woodland, striking and killing one of the woodsmen. The rest flee for their lives leaving all treasure behind believing it cursed. 

Their story is recounted to their respective warlords who listen with great interest and decide to find this cursed woodland glade and take the treasure for themselves. The respective retinues leave, each guided by one of the surviving woodsmen, and so our two sides now face each other across the cursed glade keen to grab as much of the treasure as they can.

THE RETINUES

The game was set on an 8' x 4' table. There were three players per side. On one side were the Anglo-Saxons and on the other were the Welsh with some Viking allies. Each player had an identical retinue comprising one Elite foot, one heavy foot, one light foot with short range missiles and one unit of skirmishers. Each side had one player controlling the warlord as part of an Elite foot, while the two other players had a leader as part of their Elite foot. 

A leader would give a +1 to a courage test for any unit in his retinue that was within 12" of the Leader figure, while the Warlord, who had the Commanding trait, would also give a +1 for a courage test and once per turn could reroll a failed activation of any unit within 12" of his figure.

THE TREASURE

The treasure was represented by blue glass beads. Each had a points value on the bottom of it. The value of the treasure would only become known when a player moved a figure from a unit into contact with it.

The Taxman cometh scenario under the Special Rules section on page 156 covers the acquisition and handling of the treasure. Because of the size of our game, I added some extra treasure beads and so there were four beads worth one point, three beads each worth two points and one bead worth three points. The beads were all placed in plain view on the table. The one point beads were placed in fairly accessible locations at either end of the table. The two point beads were mid way into the centre of the table and the three point bead was placed dead centre of the table. Only the two and three point beads were "guarded" by something unexpected.

OBJECT OF THE GAME

The winning side was the one who successfully acquired the most points in treasure and safely removed it via the table edge they had entered on.

THE NPCs (NASTIES)

The NPCs comprised two units of Skeleton Light foot with mixed weapons; one unit of Skeleton Elite foot; one Elite foot reduced model unit a very large green orc type (casualties tracked using a micro die) and just in case he was needed, an Elite unit Lich summoner (reduced model unit) who could fire lightning bolts (remember one such lightning bolt killed one of the woodsmen at the start of our story).

These NPCs were intended to act as speed bumps for the retinues trying to acquire the treasure. They were definitely not meant to be game changers. I did change the attack value of the light foot Skeletons from a five to a four, after all they were there to aggressively defend the treasure. 

Skeletons do not test for courage as such (they are already dead, so what have they got to worry about!), but they do test after taking casualties and if they achieve a zero or less they are reduced to an inanimate pile of bones. Skeletons are also brittle, and so casualties are rounded up. So for example three hits on their light foot (armour 2) would actually cause two casualties instead of the usual one.

ACTIVATING THE NPCs

Each time a human unit moved close enough to be able to reach a treasure bead on their next activation, the NPC unit would appear and block their path. They did not activate immediately. Instead, in the next turn the human unit and the NPC would dice off to see who activated first and then the winner would shoot, melee, or move and then the losing unit of the dice off would activate (if they were still there). 

The NPCs were not limited in the number of activations per turn, but they could only respond if threatened with attack or shooting from different units and each time there would be dice off to decide who would go first. Once destroyed, an NPC unit would not reappear, after all there's only so much a Lich Summoner can cope with.

DANGEROUS TERRAIN

There were three areas of dangerous terrain on the table. Two of them were what appeared to be small groups of trees, but if a unit got too close, massive thorny tendrils would shoot out and grab the unwary and drag them screaming into the centre of the "copse" to be devoured. Roll 1 d6 and the unit loses half that number of strength points rounded down. The third area was a very well maintained "vegetable" patch containing some of the most toxic plants known to man. Toxic pollen and thorns. Roll 1 d6 as above when any unit enters the terrain.

ACTIVATION MARKERS

Because there were a lot of units on the table, we used miniature pumpkin tokens and placed them beside a unit once it had been activated that turn. Well, they looked fun and kept the Halloween vibe going. I particularly enjoyed the shouts of "they've been pumpkin'd" and "remove all the pumpkins" at the end of each turn.

GAME OUTCOME

Effectively, both sides were identical in their makeup. At times there was some co-operation to remove NPC units, but in the end it was the Anglo-Saxons who made off with the most booty, due perhaps to superior tactics, but also the Welsh had some shocking dice rolls at times. 

My thanks go out to Matt, Mike R, Colin, Flaky Dave, Ian and Paul who played like true gentlemen and were all more than a match for the nasties they encountered.

If there's anything I've missed (there's always something) and you'd like to know more, by all means message me or catchup with me at the club. And happy gaming to you all.

Mike

Tank versus Tank action with Achtung Panzer!

 

One of the best aspects of being in a club like the Devon Wargames Group is that we are a club that is definitely among the 'early adopter' group, a term so beloved by marketing managers across the various retail sectors, but an aspect of the club that means if there is a new or relatively new set of rules out there we are likely to see someone bringing it along for a game.

So it was that one of our younger club members Charlie, and one of our not so younger members, his Dad, Jack, offered to host a game of 'Achtung Panzer!' launched by Warlord Games last year, a World War II tank combat game using 28mm scale models and focusing on platoon-level engagements.

To quote the Warlord Games folks when describing their new game system;

'Achtung Panzer! is our brand-new game of in-depth 28mm WW2 tank combat that lets you fight exciting close-quarter battles in dense terrain, and experience the effectiveness of armoured fighting vehicles and their crews in WW2, with enormous customisability and a rewarding campaign system.

You’ll control a small number of tanks, and using a unique initiative order system do battle through heavy terrain on the tabletop. Detailed spotting and destruction mechanics will require you to first identify your targets, then line up the perfect shot before you fire. The action and event card system ensures that no two games are the same, and the linked campaign system allows you to see your crews and tanks progress over the course of numerous battles.'

Now as a bit of an 'Old Grognard' who in my fifty-two years in the hobby has seen just about most things in wargaming, I try to vary my diet of games now and then, just to make sure 'I'm down there with the kids and keeping it real', and of course to sit down to a lovely table, terrain and marvellous collection of WWII vehicles in 28mm or should I say 1/56 scale, is always a pleasure, and so I prepared to see what Warlord Games had come up with this time with their new tank game 'Achtung Panzer!'

I don't usually play WWII in the larger scales, having in my own collection a large selection of 15mm tanks and infantry from Battlefront, mainly set up for Western Europe 1944-45, and I have used them using I Aint Been Shot Mum (IABSM), and occasionally Chain of Command (CoC), both from the Too Fat Lardies.

More recently I sat down to have a go with a more recent Lardy incarnation, and similarly scaled for small tank actions, 'What a Tanker' (WaT), and I have to say that these tank on tank rule sets probably inspired by the online 'World of Tanks' game have not really grabbed my enthusiasm in that I probably prefer more of a simulation, all arms set of rules like CoC, where infantry and anti-tank capable troops keep the tankers on their guard among the close terrain of NW Europe in the later years of WWII.

However, putting all my pre-conceptions to one side I decided to see what sort of game could be had with 'Achtung Panzer!' and paid close attention as Charlie explained the basics to our group of rookie tank commanders as we prepared to battle it out among the houses and hedgerows of a typical Normandy hamlet circa 1944.

As you would expect from Warlord, the game comes with some nicely produced components to compliment the vehicles and terrain of your table with an example of one of the vehicle status cards above and some of the chance cards each tank commander can hold and play when the opportunity presents, but always with the threat of a counter card held by ones opponent.

The game sequence is driven by a series of chit draws determining which particular model tank can activate to move and fire, and we managed to play two games during the day with the first game very much on the 'learning curve', with myself commanding a Panzer IV alongside another such tank, a Panzer III and StuG IIIG, facing off against an assortment of Allied types including a Sherman, Cromwell, Sherman Firefly and Stuart.

Both sides were tasked with controlling a small village between our lines, and so with the Panzer IV's attempting to get into a covering position it was left to the StuG and Panzer III to get into the village, whilst the Allies seemed content to sit back on their ridge line and take pot shots at manoeuvring German tanks in the fields below their ridge overlooking said village.

Not surprisingly the Firefly drew most German return fire, forcing it to reverse into cover to make repairs allowing the lighter German tanks to use the respite to get in among the buildings to lay claim to controlling the hamlet.

In our second game we had the German force fielding some big cats including Tiger and Panther alongside the Panzer IVs and with the Allies attempting to storm our position on a ridge as they looked to present multiple targets in the hope that one of them would be able to close for a fatal flank shot.

The German big-cats won the day though smashing up the advancing Allied armour with a few tense moments of card play and dashes between cover to spice up the play, before the Germans got the drop in the important exchanges of fire.

So rather than giving a detailed blow by blow account of Achtung Panzer! I thought I would offer my very personal impression of the game, very much similar to that of What a Tanker, in that these games are much in vogue at the moment along with skirmish games in general; with it seems a new generation of historical gamers less inclined to build and field big collections of miniatures, requiring the time to play the larger battle, with all its added complexities of command and combined arms tactics, but rather the low-level skirmish game focussed on the minutia of which armour piercing shell to stick in the breach and how good is my driver at performing a high speed reverse.

So what's wrong with that you might say, to which I would reply nothing, if you enjoy that kind of game, combined as here with the terrain and vehicles to compliment play, and that said, I enjoyed this break from my normal diet of play, but I don't think Achtung Panzer and other similar offerings have enough nutrition to satisfy my personal hunger for historical simulation, similar to the choice between a MacDonalds and a gourmet three course dinner with wine.

If nothing else, WWII land warfare generally marked a return to combined-arms warfare, where infantry, artillery and armour worked best when brought together in combat teams, specifically arranged in quantity for the task at hand; and with the array of anti-tank capability in the hands of the poor bloody infantry, the tanks tended to often enter battlefields, as seen above, like shy debutantes stepping onto the ball-room dance floor, only too aware that that hedgerow in front could easily be shielding a Panzerschreck or PIAT team waiting for their opportunity to cause absolute mayhem.

Thus the infantry screen for such armoured advances were a necessity, whilst the armour, proof against machinegun and most artillery, particularly the more common mortar round, offered the infantry heavy support in the face of such threats, often being used to shoot the infantry onto the target such as a large wood or village.

There are of course occasional actions that come to mind where this type of tank v tank engagement with the occasional anti-tank gun on the scene was an event and actions such as SS-Unterscharfuhrer Ernst Barkmann at what became known as Barkmann's Corner and SS-Obersturmführer Michael Wittmann at Villers Bocage readily offer themselves as potential historical scenarios playable with these rules. 

During the brave engagement often called "Barkmann's Corner", 

SS-Unterscharfuhrer Ernst Barkmann pictured, destroyed approximately 

nine Sherman tanks and many other various vehicles with his lone Panther tank.

http://www.achtungpanzer.com/gen5.htm

I can easily see the attraction of these 'Tank Heavy' games and for Warlord in particular, with models to sell, the rules make perfect marketing strategy, and I rather hope they prove to be the entry-drug required to attract a new generation of wargamer into the historical gaming arena, and in due time a desire to replicate the history that these sort of games should inspire further reading to produce.

So in closing, I think Achtung Panzer! is a well produced game of tank versus tank action that gives a tense skirmish 'knife fight' of a game playable to a conclusion in a few hours of play, but for the WWII aficionado perhaps just a light interlude to their normal gaming and to the new student of WWII warfare a set of rules and game that should hopefully encourage further exploration into other rule sets that produce an equally fun game with all the complexities and challenge of combined arms warfare that WWII tanks were but a part.

Thank you to Jack and Charlie for my first game of Achtung Panzer! and to Stephen, David, Nathan and Owen for the fun we had trading APDS among the hedgerows.

JJ